Search form

Training

NIH Post-doctoral training program

This Baylor College of Medicine interdepartmental training program provides multidisciplinary training and career development for basic scientists and physicians interested in the study of neurological disorders in children. This is achieved through formal post-doctoral training programs funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Dr. John Swann is the training Program Director and is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the program. Dr. Huda Zoghbi is the Program Director.

Major areas of training include the genetic and molecular basis of neurodevelopmental disorders, including, but not limited to: Rett syndrome, Angelman syndrome, Fragile X syndrome and autism. Another concentrated area of training is in the molecular basis of inherited and acquired epilepsies.

Mentors for this training program are research and clinical faculty selected from various departments at the Baylor College of Medicine. Labs of participating mentors employ cutting-edge biotechnology to create and study relevant animal models of neurological and neurodegenerative diseases to understand their biological basis as well as to identify potential new therapies that could lead to clinical trials and eventually become standard clinical practice.

So far, training program has received 16 years of continuous funding from the NIH and has supported 38 post-doctoral fellows. Three program tracks are offered for trainees. One is for M.D./Ph.D.s and M.D.s with substantial research experience. Another is for less experienced M.D.s for whom training is more formal and includes laboratory rotations and graduate courses. Ph.D.s receive substantial training in the clinical aspects of neurodevelopmental disorders through dinner discussions, clinical conferences and subspecialty clinics.